Lesson 1Aircraft airworthiness checklist: frame, propellers, motors, sensors, and antennasThis section details confirming aircraft airworthiness with checklists, inspecting frames, arms, propellers, motors, sensors, and antennas for wear, damage, or misalignment that could affect flight safety or data quality.
Frame, arms, and landing gear structural checksPropeller condition, balance, and secure mountingMotor bearings, mounts, and abnormal noise checksSensor, antenna, and wiring integrity inspectionDocumenting and resolving airworthiness defectsLesson 2Flight logging and metadata capture best practices for mapping and inspectionsThis section teaches best practices for flight logging and metadata capture, configuring logs, recording parameters, and storing metadata for mapping, inspections, and audits to ensure traceable and repeatable results.
Essential fields in a flight log entryCapturing GNSS, altitude, and attitude metadataLogging payload, mission type, and conditionsExporting and backing up flight log filesUsing logs for audits and incident reviewsLesson 3Checklists and SOP templates for consistent pre-flight and post-flight proceduresThis section explains designing and using checklists and SOPs for drone work, building pre-flight, in-flight, and post-flight templates to standardise tasks, reduce errors, and support training and compliance.
Structuring effective pre-flight checklistsStandard in-flight monitoring checklist itemsPost-flight inspection and shutdown stepsVersion control for SOPs and checklistsTraining crews to follow SOPs consistentlyLesson 4Required documentation: operations plan, risk assessment, maintenance log, pilot credentials, client permissionsThis section explains documentation for professional drone work, preparing operations plans, risk assessments, maintenance logs, pilot credentials, and client permissions to meet regulatory and contractual obligations.
Building a clear flight operations planCreating a practical risk assessment matrixMaintaining a detailed maintenance logbookOrganising pilot licences and certificationsManaging client approvals and site permissionsLesson 5Communications and control checks: RC links, fail-safes, telemetry and compass calibrationThis section focuses on validating communications and control links before flight, testing RC range, confirming fail-safe behaviour, verifying telemetry, and performing compass checks to reduce flyaway or control loss risks.
Pre-flight RC link and range verificationConfiguring and testing fail-safe behavioursValidating telemetry and battery data feedsCompass calibration and interference checksInterpreting link quality warnings in flightLesson 6Equipment redundancy and spares: batteries, propellers, data storage, and toolsThis section covers planning equipment redundancy and spares, defining minimum spare batteries, propellers, storage media, and tools to maintain safety, reduce downtime, and keep missions on schedule.
Determining spare battery requirementsPropeller spares and quick replacement kitsRedundant data storage and card rotationEssential tools for field repairs and tuningOrganising and labelling field equipment casesLesson 7Battery and power system checks: state of charge, health, storage, transport and hot-swap proceduresThis section covers assessing drone batteries and power systems before flight, verifying charge levels, evaluating health, applying safe storage and transport rules, and performing hot-swaps during demanding missions.
Reading state-of-charge indicators accuratelyInterpreting cycle count and battery health dataSafe charging, storage, and transport proceduresHot-swap workflows for continuous operationsDetecting swelling, damage, and unsafe batteriesLesson 8Sensor and camera calibration: gimbal function, focus, lens cleanliness, and radiometric considerationsThis section explains sensor and camera calibration for reliable data, checking gimbal motion, focus, lens cleanliness, and radiometric settings to ensure consistent imagery for mapping, inspection, and documentation.
Gimbal initialisation and movement checksFocus tests for mapping and inspection tasksLens cleaning methods and contamination checksRadiometric settings for thermal payloadsRecording calibration status before missionsLesson 9Pre-flight environmental checks: wind, temperature, surface reflections, glare, and sun angleThis section addresses environmental checks before takeoff, evaluating wind, temperature, surface reflections, glare, and sun angle to avoid unsafe conditions and protect data quality for mapping and inspection missions.
Assessing wind speed, gusts, and directionTemperature effects on batteries and liftManaging glare, reflections, and hot surfacesPlanning around sun angle and shadowsSelecting safe launch and landing locationsLesson 10Firmware, firmware rollback policies, and verifying GNSS/RTK initialisationsThis section covers managing firmware and GNSS/RTK initialisation, planning updates, applying rollback policies, verifying GNSS locks, and confirming RTK corrections for stable navigation and positioning across missions.
Planning and scheduling firmware updatesImplementing safe rollback proceduresVerifying GNSS lock and satellite geometryConfirming RTK corrections and base linksRecording firmware and GNSS status in logs
